Chinese word

时

Pronunciation

Pinyinshí

Meaning

  • nountime

Example

你来时我不在家。nǐ lái shí wǒ bú zài jiā

When you come, I am not at home.

Illustration for 时 (time)

More examples

他没有足够的时间。tā méi yǒu zú gòu de shí jiān

He does not have enough time.

Core concept

A point or stretch in the flow of events, from a brief moment to an hour or a longer period.

Common phrases

  • 时间shí jiān

    time

  • 什么时候shén me shí hòu

    when

  • 有时候yǒu shí hòu

    sometimes

Similar words

时间shí jiān: Time as a general idea, including duration and a specific time.
时候shí hòu: The time or situation in which an event takes place.
时刻shí kè: A specific point in time that can be identified fairly exactly.
期间qī jiān: A set length of time bounded by a beginning and an end.

Definition in Chinese

指某一时刻或一段时间，也可表示一般的时间概念，常见于合成词和短语中。zhǐ mǒu yì shí kè huò yí duàn shí jiān yě kě biǎo shì yì bān de shí jiān gài niàn cháng jiàn yú hé chéng cí hé duán yǔ zhōng

Word origin

时 (shí, "time") is the simplified form of the traditional character, with 日 (rì, "sun") linked to daylight and 寸 (cùn, "inch") replacing the older sound component.

Usage tips

  • In everyday time clauses, a longer expression meaning "when" is often more natural than this short form, which remains common in compounds and concise written language.

Other meanings

  • hournoun
  • periodnoun

Related words

Word lists with this word